White Oak Bicycle Co-Op needs more bike donations

HAMILTON COUNTY,Tenn. (WDEF)- White Oak Bicycle Co-Op is well on its way to distributing more than 700 bikes in 2024. 

“We have given away 516 bikes this year to different community organizations like metropolitan ministries, bridge refugee services, as well as Hamilton County Schools,” said Ben Richards, Operations Director at White Oak Bicycle Co-Op

White Oak Bicycle Co-Op  is a non-profit that is dedicated to providing bicycles to organizations and enhancing public health. 

Richards  considers bicycles an easy and fun way for transportation. 

“Bikes can just be a freedom. It is sort of an individual freedom, to ride your bike wherever you need to go,’ said Richards. “You are not reliant on busses that may not run late at night. You are not relying on busses that are late or do not ever come.” 

According to White Oak Bicycle Co-Op, having a bike can promote a healthy lifestyle. 

Richards believes  in order to provide these bikes to the community, it takes hours to repair them. 

“We also put in, hundreds of hours getting the bikes to where they need to go, making sure that they are good to go, making sure they are safe and clean,” said Richards. “ It can be something that someone can be proud to ride. So it is really a community effort we rely on and are so grateful for all the volunteers.” 

White Oak Bicycle Co-Op has donated bicycles to both children and older adults. 

Richards is hopeful to see even  more folks with a bicycle in the future. 

“We need bikes. So please check out our website for our donation locations, or if you want to learn more about our story or about all the other work we do. we were a broad organization. We give away fights to everybody, we can just try to make big biking safer in Chattanooga” Richards concluded. 

Folks can visit White Oak Bicycle Co-Op for more information and where to donate bikes.